Law enforcement officers and many military personnel are trained and retested regularly for appropriate and accurate use of firearms in the line of duty. Various training systems are available. In most of these training systems, the officer is exposed to a series of mock scenarios represented on movie screens. The officer must make instantaneous decisions regarding when, where and whom to shoot as he moves through the course.
The handguns used during these exercises are not loaded with live ammunition. Rather, in most of these systems, a laser device of some sort is installed in the barrel. When the trigger is pulled, a laser beam is emitted from the barrel instead of a bullet. The screens and targets have laser-sensitive screens so that, when the laser beam hits the screen, a “hit” is recorded usually in a computer system. In this way, the officer's performance can be recorded and reviewed later for evaluation.
To accurately train and test the officer's performance, it is important that the conditions in the training facility closely simulate field conditions where live ammunition is being fired. In particular, it is important to recreate as realistically as possible the way a loaded handgun operates, including the recoil force of the gun while firing repeatedly. However, if only a laser is used in the weapon, there is no reverse impact generated with the weapon is “fired.” This deprives the trainee of critical experience in recoil management and target re-acquisition.
The unrealistic feel of a laser-modified training firearm has led to attempts to provide a training firearm with realistic recoil. An authentic automatic or semi-automatic handgun cycles or re-cocks itself automatically after the first round is fired. As each round is fired, the explosive impact of the bullet not only propels the bullet out of the barrel but pushes the slide assembly back to recock the hammer. The firing chamber is simultaneously reloaded. Thus, the gun can be fired repeatedly until the magazine is emptied without ever having to pull back the slide assembly or manually cock the hammer. However, the recoil force is significant, and novice shooters will be distracted by it until they become accustomed to it. The trainee must learn to recover quickly from the impact of the recoil and immediately to realign the gun sight for the next shot.
Various methods have been employed to cause the laser-modified training weapons to provide simulated recoil. Some of these include the use of compressed gas, usually CO2. In some cases, the compressed gas is supplied by a portable tank carried on the officer's back. In others, the gas is stored in a remote tank and supplied to the firearm through a flexible conduit connected to the weapon. However, in both these systems, the weapon is unnaturally tethered. This substantially affects the way the officer carries himself and handles his weapon, and significantly detracts from the reality of the experience.
Another method in the prior art to simulate live fire in a handgun is an “air” bullet. This is a bullet casing loaded with compressed gas, which discharges and cycles the weapon when the gun is fired much like a live round. These air bullets function well enough but are expensive and must be used within a few minutes of air injection or they will lose their charge. In addition, the spent shells are not disposable; they are retrieved and recharged.
There is a need for a training firearm that utilizes a laser “firing” device and yet provides realistic recoil without encumbering the trainee with extra equipment. There is a need for a recoil system that can be retrofitted in a wide variety of actual firearms so that the training experience is as close as possible to field experience with the same type of firearm. There is a need for a training firearm with a recoil system powered by inexpensive, disposable compressed gas cylinders. There is a need for a training firearm which avoids clean up and recharging of spent shells. There is a need for a training firearm the looks, feels and operates like an actual firearm. There is a need for a training firearm that can be used inexpensively for dry firing experience.